Las Vegas’ political outsiders learn to play the inside game up in Carson City

Senate Minority Whip Joe Hardy, center, talks with members of Nevadans for the Common Good in his office in Carson City on Monday, Feb. 11, 2013. The group, a coalition of faith-based organizations, is learning about the legislative process as members lobby for AB67, whch would strengthen the laws against sex traffickers.

Sun coverage

Before the Paulsens embark on their journey to influence the Nevada Legislature, David Paulsen says he needs to pick up a couple of quarts of oil for the 1994 Ford Econoline van. He bought it recently on eBay for $5,500 from a seller back East and drove to Nevada in a three-day sprint.

We have a long drive ahead of us, 450 miles to Carson City, so we start early and go north on the two-lane U.S. 95, passing one mountain range after another, the valley floor filled with sagebrush, the temperature dipping.

David and his wife, Barbara Paulsen, are part of a group of about 40 volunteers flying and driving to the state capital, where they will lobby the Legislature to toughen the state’s sex-trafficking laws. They want to make it easier to prosecute violent pimps and impose stiffer penalties while helping victims of the Las Vegas sex trade get treatment and whatever else they need to repair their lives.

Their campaign, in truth, shouldn’t be difficult to win. But this is their first time lobbying and is a good opportunity to test their mettle and prepare for future, more challenging, efforts.

The Paulsens are part of Nevadans for the Common Good, comprising members of nonprofit groups and churches, synagogues and mosques who grew tired of helplessly watching the community’s social dysfunction while the politicians dithered and the powers-that-be secretly cheered the status quo.

And so it begins with this trip to Carson City and the hard but necessary work if Nevada is going to be something other than what it is.

Barbara Paulsen organized the transport, arranging rides to and from the valley and the Reno airport to Carson City. I’m reminded of the civil rights activists who created a complex system of ride-sharing during the Montgomery bus boycott — great change requires these small but important tasks.

While David drives, Barbara Paulsen tells me how she wound up in this van, on this seven-hour drive. Her ancestors settled Belt, a small Montana town where she was raised. At the University of Montana in the 1960s, they gave her both the male and female aptitude tests to determine her career possibilities. That was a thing in those days.

On her way to becoming a dietitian, she was the only woman in a graduate course in analytical chemistry at the University of Missouri, but still somehow the professor could never get her name straight. On the upside, she met David in the class. They moved to Boulder City, where David was a chemist for the county’s water reclamation department, while Barbara worked on nutrition issues for the Dairy Council of Utah/Nevada. They raised three children, and now, in retirement, they think about the world they are leaving for their grandchild.

We stop at the Area 51 Alien Center. A sign commands, “Smoke 'em if you got 'em.”

• • •

Last spring at UNLV, Nevadans for the Common Good held a general membership rally, which drew more than 1,000 people. It was by turns boisterous celebration and solemn call to action. The idea is that Nevada’s business and labor elite have their megaphones and their lobbyists to whisper to elected officials, while the broader community remains voiceless.

Cynic that I am, I had dismissed the rally as another well-meaning but ultimately unsuccessful effort to move us from the top of all those bad lists we hear about that measure education and health care.

As it turns out, Nevadans for the Common Good has been quietly but diligently working, like an ant colony, and now it's ready to act.

The group hired Robert Hoo, a talented organizer who is a graduate of Yale University and its law school but chose this work instead of money.

He helped them form six geographic clusters and a leadership team that meets every two weeks. They coalesced around an issue — sex trafficking — about which there was broad consensus and a good shot at victory.

Hoo, who is riding with us, says this kind of work usually begins with stories — people talking about how they’ve been affected by failing schools or health care.

“Like Barbara’s story of her family settling the West, we all have these stories, even if they’re less dramatic, and it defines why we drive 450 miles to Carson City,” Hoo says.

He has his own story: He is the son of Chinese immigrants — his parents met in the immigration office in New York City in the mid-1960s. He traveled to China and learned about his father’s aunts and uncles, all brutally persecuted by the regime, imprisoned, executed, ruined.

Hoo says that at 15 or 16, living in a well-to-do New York City suburb, he realized the great sacrifices his family had made to give him a life of freedom from both subjugation and want. “I remember thinking, ‘I really need to do something with my life.’”

His yearning is shared by the others in the van. We arrive in Carson City as the sun sets. I head to a hotel while the Paulsens find the $38-per-day campground.

• • •

Monday morning, we meet at United Methodist Church of Carson City, one of the oldest buildings in Nevada.

We drink coffee in paper cups as people begin to arrive.

“We’re gonna stuff some folders — do you wanna give us a hand?” Hoo asks a volunteer.

Then it’s time for orientation, and he stands before about 65 volunteers — 25 Northern Nevadans have joined the 40 Nevadans for the Common Good who have made the pilgrimage from the south.

The group has arranged for a set of meetings with Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto, who is pushing the sex-trafficking legislation, as well as a number of key legislators. They’ll be on the floor of the Assembly and Senate and introduced during the ceremonial part of the day’s session. Barbara Paulsen will give a short presentation to the Republican Assembly Caucus.

Nevadans for the Common Good, with Hoo’s prodding, has arrived at a key insight: While Nevada is usually run by a small crowd of powerful special interests, there are low barriers to entry. Constituents can meet with legislators fairly easily and, with their expertise, influence them.

The group has held 27 meetings with various legislators before the session even began, focusing smartly on the judiciary and money committees, where they’ll need allies.

Today, the volunteers — wearing buttons that read “Yes on AB67” — do a role-playing exercise with a minister acting in the the role of bombastic state senator so they can learn how to be most effective. It sounds cheesy, like an "Up with People" icebreaker, but it’s effective. The lessons: Be prepared by knowing the issue and the legislative proposal cold; let them know you are a constituent and represent a congregation of hundreds of families and thousands of members of Nevadans for the Common Good; suss out potential counter-arguments, interest group opposition and other political intelligence; be succinct; and follow up with a thank-you note and let them know you’re in this for the long haul.

Hoo gives them a pep talk: “Our object today is to be seen and heard, to demonstrate that we are a large and growing constituency and to make sure there is progress on this important legislation, to listen and hear concerns and pick up political intelligence. The conventional wisdom is that money and power — they’re the decision-makers. Today we want to make a small but important step to change that reality.”

At the Legislature, the group shows they’ve learned their lessons. They know the legislation, and they’re good at making succinct but compelling arguments — they offer examples of violent pimps who get released too quickly and go back to exploiting the same women.

In a meeting with state Sen. Joe Hardy, one is quick to note, “I’m in your district.”

Hardy brightens, “Bless your heart!”

With more than 1,000 bills offered over the course of the session, legislators usually don’t have time to read them all, so the activists summarize the sex-trafficking bill for them and answer questions.

Hardy is visibly impressed with their preparation and skills. “You’ve got more grass roots than grass!”

Before leaving, the group asks Hardy’s aide for updates on the bill’s progress and unexpected opposition.

There doesn’t seem to be any. There are no lobbyists for violent pimps.

The group acknowledges this, and more than once I hear the analogy of the prizefighter who must take on a few easy opponents — “tomato cans” — to learn the fight game and get his confidence up before taking on tougher opponents. It’s an apt analogy.

At the end of the day, they debrief, compiling intelligence on how legislators are reacting so far. They’re especially concerned about the bill’s fiscal note — any bill that costs money could die in the money committees.

They also have come to a stark conclusion: Republican Assemblyman John Hambrick, who is again advocating for sex-trafficking legislation after failing in 2011, may seem like a good ally, but he has drawbacks. He’s not well liked, especially by the Democratic majority.

They are already considering a Plan B in case Hambrick's best ideas die. It’s a sophisticated observation, and a correct one, after spending just eight hours in the building.

Before sending them home, their day of lobbying done, Hoo leaves them with this: “I think we learned you can have an impact by doing your homework, building relationships and being clear about your interests. We’re building something here. We may not have as much money as gaming or mining, but we’re organized, and we’re in it for the long haul, and we will have an impact.”

Once they win this battle, they’ll move on to the next issue: Quality of life for seniors in a community with an elderly suicide rate that is twice the national average. Another seemingly easy issue, but buried in there is a more thorny one — bolstering Southern Nevada’s paltry health care infrastructure, which will take money.

Let's hope farther on the horizon for Nevadans for the Common Good is the game-changer: education.

• • •

When the meeting wraps up, the sky is darkening and we head back to the van.

On the long drive home, somewhere north of Tonopah, the Paulsens remark that although they came of age in the 1960s, they were not politically active then.

“We aren’t reliving the idealism of youth,” Barbara Paulsen says.

Instead, they hope they’re living the wisdom of age.

They feel obligated to get involved now because “we feel much of this has happened on our watch,” David Paulsen says ruefully.

It’s after midnight when we return to the Las Vegas Valley. No doubt scores of young women are at work to pay off their pimps.

Join the Discussion:

Previous Discussion: 6 comments so far…

Comments are moderated by Las Vegas Sun editors. Our goal is not to limit the discussion, but rather to elevate it. Comments should be relevant and contain no abusive language. Comments that are off-topic, vulgar, profane or include personal attacks will be removed. Full comments policy. Additionally, we now display comments from trusted commenters by default. Those wishing to become a trusted commenter need to verify their identity or sign in with Facebook Connect to tie their Facebook account to their Las Vegas Sun account. For more on this change, read our story about how it works and why we did it.

Only trusted comments are displayed on this page. Untrusted comments have expired from this story.

Cooligan, Why don't you admit you are a shill and have no interest in really stopping human trafficking or underage prostitution? You write like you are sincere yet when confronted with skin peddlers receiving an illegal business license in Clark County to use a property previously embroiled in corruption where the owner, Michael Galardi and 3 Clark County Commissioners were imprisoned for corruption, you refuse to even mention it. In April of 2012 the illegal license granted by Clark County put 10.6 million dollars into the hands of Galardi and an illegal license in the hands of Texas strip club owners accused by the state of texas and city of houston of being involved in underage prostitution, human trafficking and allowing drug and gang activity in their Houston business. Now they have successfully and illegally moved their business center to Clark County with the blessing of the Clark County Commissioners. You have known about this for almost a year and have refused to report on it. You are a phoney and a disgrace. I realize the average reader who doesn't have this information and can't see through your facade but I can. My only other question is how much to you get paid to ignore this reality and refuse to write about it? You are a disgrace to investigative journalists everywhere.

"The Paulsens are part of Nevadans for the Common Good, comprising members of nonprofit groups and churches, synagogues and mosques who grew tired of helplessly watching the community's social dysfunction while the politicians dithered and the powers-that-be secretly cheered the status quo. . . . .We stop at the Area 51 Alien Center."

Coolican -- gotta disagree with you about this bunch of religious do-gooders. As I've posted in the past, this "trafficking" issue is really a non-issue. They exaggerate way too much, when those who've chosen this way of life later need someone else to blame. No such thing except in the minds of these proponents whose real agenda seems to be forcing the rest of us live according their morality.

And Area 51 is on the other side of the state from the Vegas to Carson City route.

"If you want to dramatize the evils of prostitution, corrupt a virgin, not a whore." -- Blake Edwards, director and screenwriter (1981)

Killer, it isn't exactly a non issue though. If a person is under 18 and being used to generate profits for their "keeper," and moved to areas like las vegas because of the lucrativeness of the area, it is trafficking. And yes, I've met several people in that situation in Las vegas. Although some of them are over 18, they weren't when they started. Yes, they may have had drug problems or came from broken homes, but that doesn't mean they deserve to be victimized and used by their keepers and moved to whatever city suits their needs.

I agree these do gooders may not be the ones that should be dealing with the problem but as you said, the politicians cheer the status quo because a lot of sick people travel to las vegas simply for the multitude of vices available there. When I was dating a girl a bit younger than me who looked much younger than she actually was, I had a scum bag ask me where to go in LV to find underage girls. i took his license plate, car make and model and description of him and phoned it in to Metro along with my name and number so they could contact me if they needed a witness. I was told a detective would be put on the case and I would be called in a a day or two. No one ever contacted me and after my encounters with the crooked LVMPD I really didn't expect them to.

"...it isn't exactly a non issue though. If a person is under 18 and being used to generate profits for their "keeper," and moved to areas like las vegas because of the lucrativeness of the area, it is trafficking. And yes, I've met several people in that situation in Las vegas."

JustMe -- your comments are appreciated, and to be respected. But don't forget Nevada's arbitrary age of consent is 16, a conflict with the assumption anyone under 18 is "underage." What you described may involve coercion, but mostly it's about bad choices then blaming someone else when facing the consequences. Like being arrested for prostitution.

In my view the entire issue is being used as a crowbar for the state to pry open our protected, private liberties and rummage around looking for an excuse to arrest, etc.

Don't know about others but I found no compelling evidence from the article that AB 67 is necessary.

There were no pertinent facts presented by the author indicating that involuntary servitude is prevalent in Nevada, no associated statistics regarding the history of arrests and convictions as well as public cost estimates associated with enforcement of the proposed bill.

Without presenting associated pertinent facts relative to the issue no reasonable debate can be engaged to reach an informed decision as to whether AB 67 is necessary let alone a viable solution in suppressing/eliminating human trafficking objectives.

It would be convenient and nice if it were truly a non-issue. Unfortunately that is far from the case. Las Vegas Metro police report that 107 children were recovered from sex trafficking in 2012. Over 60 percent of these kids come from Nevada. Ninety one percent of these children were ages 15 to 18. Since 1994, 2,229 children were recovered from sex trafficking in Las Vegas. If you really want to call this a non-issue, you go right ahead. It only makes you look foolish. I am right now dealing with a family who is directly affected by this issue. Would you like to tell them it's a non-issue?

Francyl: And many adults, like children, are not exactly able to withstand pressure and abuse from pimps. Arrest, convict, and publicize the Johns--Reno recently did. It just isn't a valid argument that adults are in total control of their "careers" and decisions when we spend all our social welfare dollars on Moms with young kids (including K-12) and ignore every other need. We need options for young and older adults after they get out of school, the military, out of an abusive situation, suddenly out of work. Sure, we're all supposed to have an 8-10 month emergency fund to enable decisions and options other than living on the street whenever life happens....and it's not easy to accumulate an emergency fund...without guidance (never had parental guidance)....and this is the first time in your life you've had a few bucks to spend. Non-profit dormitories with soup kitchens where people can stay in the same room for 3 months or more is one way to allow choices.

So the Las Vegas Sun admits that even though this is good legislation is is likely to fail because it's sponsored by Republicans and the Democrats would rather kill it because of partisanship. The real pimps in this story are the Nevada Democrats and the LV sun. The Democrats would rather give pimps get free range to roam in this state before they give credit to a Republican. All i can do is puke over news like this.

ACLU of Nevada on AB 67: ***Prosecuting Sex Traffickers Should Not Come at the Expense of ourCivil Liberties***

The ACLU agrees that actual sex traffickers should be punished, but has concerns that:

* Requiring prosecutorial consent to a preliminary hearing erodes critical procedural safeguards, may raise confrontation clause issues, and likely will clog up our court system. This is like requiring the District Attorney to consent to a defendant's right to a trial by jury. (Sec. 7, amending NRS 171.196)

* Expanding Nevada's already overcrowded jail and prison populations by vastly increasing sentences and penalties, including removing the option for probation from existing crimes, costs the State money that would be better spent on survivors' services. (Sec. 42, amending NRS 203.100)

* Assuming that adults cannot freely choose to engage in sexual activity without governmental interference invades the right to privacy. Consent is a factual determination that should be made on a case-by-case basis. (Sec. 1, amending NRS Chapter 41)

* Broadening the definitions of existing crimes and eliminating the element of coercion deprives women of the freedom to choose what to do with their bodies. Sex trafficking is slavery, and must involve an element of coercion. (Sec. 13, 34, 41)

Under AB 67, prosecution of the following individuals would be possible:

- Children, parents, and significant others supported by a sex worker, for "living off the earnings of a prostitute" (Sec. 13);

- Friend and family members that drive sex workers to their appointments, for "transport[ing]" and/or "harbor[ing]" a sex worker (Sec. 1);

- An immigrant worker who pays someone for a ride from Las Vegas to Los Angeles, for the same reason.

Although they may have good intentions, their understanding of the real-world issue is limited.

FACT: Most youth do not enter the sex trade due to pimps/traffickers but to survive after running away from an abusive home or being kicked out due to LGBTQ intolerance. Where is the social safety net?

***"Lost Boys: New research demolishes the stereotype of the underage sex worker--and sparks an outbreak of denial among child-sex-trafficking alarmists nationwide"***

"Most astonishing to the researchers was the demographic profile teased out by the study. Published by the U.S. Department of Justice in September 2008, Curtis and Dank's findings thoroughly obliterated the long-held core assumptions about underage prostitution:

Nearly half of the kids--about 45 percent--were boys.

Only 10 percent were involved with a "market facilitator" (e.g., a pimp).

About 45 percent got into the "business" through friends.

More than 90 percent were U.S.-born (56 percent were New York City natives).

On average, they started hooking at age 15.

Most serviced men--preferably white and wealthy.

Most deals were struck on the street.

Almost 70 percent of the kids said they'd sought assistance at a youth-service agency at least once.

Nearly all of the youths--95 percent--said they exchanged sex for money because it was the surest way to support themselves.

In other words, the typical kid who is commercially exploited for sex in New York City is not a tween girl, has not been sold into sexual slavery, and is not held captive by a pimp.

Nearly all the boys and girls involved in the city's sex trade are going it alone."

Quote from a youth in the sex trade based on research with street youth in the Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children (CSEC) Community Intervention Project:

"People call you a survivor when you leave the life; I am a survivor while I'm in it."

A harsh reality is that many homeless youth report engaging in an informal economy of survival sex due to lack of a social safety net. Vulnerable communities often work together for safety and support each other through sharing information about limited resources. An unintended consequence of AB67 is that such youth would be at greater risk of harm by creating fear that anyone in their support network could be criminalized as a sex trafficker, thus pushing good people out of their network (given the overly broad definition of sex trafficking casting such a wide net).

We need to focus on prevention over mass incarceration through sustainable wage jobs, affordable housing, and equitable education opportunities. You would think religious groups would agree? www.nevadansagainstAB67.com

Triple777: AB67 was introduced by Democratic Attorney General Cortez-Masto. As people actually read what is in the highly problematic 39-page (!) bill and opposition is mounting, it is hardly being covered by local MSM. Hmmm...

Supreme Court brought us Citizens United. We have a civil War between Catholics. The culture War crowd Scalia, Bill O'reilly, Hannity, etc. and the social justice crowd, Sotomayor, Martin Sheen, Chavez in Venezuela, etc. America let its guard down when these people came in in great numbers around the turn of the Century. WASP culture split the difference, and avoided infighting Teddy Roosevelt, etc. We are now headed toward a Latin American style Slum - Mansion culture with graffiti on the wall. Nevada suffers the same. That is why Sen Geary did not want the Godfather coming to Nevada. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Geary